Roller skating is a very popular activity in the United States and many parts of the world and is growing in interest. When roller skates were first introduced to the public, they commonly were the type that clamped on to the soles of the shoes of the users. In more recent years, roller skates are manufactured as an integral component of shoes, normally by attaching the platform of a roller skate directly to the heel and sole of the shoe. Since roller skates are designed with wheels having bearings to afford minimum rotational resistance, the skater is always faced with the problem of stopping rapidly. A means usually employed by skaters is to drag the toe of one foot. For this reason, toe stops are commonly a part of roller skates. The toe stops are typically cylindrical members, usually frusto-conically shaped with the small diameter end affixed to the forward lower end of the skate shoe. The user, to slow down or stop, tilts one foot forward so that the toe stop engages the skating surface to provide friction and therefore braking action. However, many skaters prefer to drag the foot further behind them when stopping, which tends to cause the toe of the shoe to engage the skating surface and thereby results in rapid wearing of the shoe toe. This is particularly true amoung younger skaters.
Skating rinks which rent skate shoes at nominal expense to skating patrons particularly find that replacement costs of shoes having the toes worn from being dragged on the skating surface is a large expense item. In addition, individual owners of skate shoes who prefer to drag the toe of one shoe during braking action find that replacing skating shoes because the toe is worn is a big expense to their skating activity.
The present invention provides a toe guard for use on roller skates to protect the toe of the skate shoe. Particularly, an object of the present invention is to provide a toe guard for use on roller skate shoes which have an extended toe stop adjacent the shoe toe, the toe guard being in the form of an elongated flexible member having a large diameter opening at one end of a dimension to receive the toe stop of the roller skate shoe and having small openings at the other end which receive the shoe lace so that the toe guard extends over the toe of the shoe to protect it against wear.
Still more particularly, an object of the invention is to provide a toe guard as described configured in a way to insure that the toe guard will remain in proper position over the toe of the shoe and will not likely be displaced to one side or the other.